Reviving a lifeline, collectively

In the last one decade, people of the Malnad region have been facing acute shortage of water in summer. The situation in Karki and Makkikoppa villages in Tirthahalli taluk of Shivamogga district is not different. Sahyadri mountain range borders the villages on two sides. Paddy, areca nut, pepper, banana and ginger are the main crops grown here. There are five houses in Karki and 25 houses in Makkikoppa.

Hillocks like Nellisara Gudda, Oddinabailu, Doopadasara, Elakkisara, Govinakatte and Charli that are known for wild fruits such as kavali, chembarlu, tumari and charli surround the villages. In an average year, this region gets a rainfall of about 3,500 mm. All the water that falls on these six hillocks flows down to the Karki stream. Three major water sources of these villages — Kalargundi, Chattarkallu and Kappehonda — are situated near this stream. In the recent years, these water sources including Karki stream have been drying up in summer. Many attempted digging borewells to save their crops, but only 10% of the borewells yielded water.

As a result, farmers had to depend on tanker water from River Tunga to save their crops. Such an unprecedented situation made villagers think about water conservation efforts not only to sail through drought-like situations but also ensure availability of water all through the year. A team of villagers comprising Ramesh, K T Gururaj, Manjappa Master, Shridhara, Jairaj, Umesh, Ganesh and Shivanand met water conservation experts to discuss and plan water harvesting structures on the hillocks. All the families of the two villages joined hands and the work went on for three months from February 2017. While the villagers did most of the work manually, JCBs were also used to dig trenches. People who live away from the villages also extended support.

Structures like percolation ponds and trenches were constructed on the hillocks, at different levels, from top to bottom. As many as 500 semi-circular ponds have been dug on these six hillocks. The ponds are of varying sizes — 50 to 100 feet long, 3-4 feet wide and 6-7 feet deep. Huge water harvesting structures are constructed at the base of the hillocks. With the arrival of monsoon, all the water harvesting structures are now brimming with water. While these structures help in rainwater percolation, they also act as filters that prevent silt from entering the stream. Though there are chances of wild animals falling into these huge percolation ponds, they come out climing the steps on both sides.

“We haven’t cut trees in this process. We are also planning to plant saplings wherever possible. There are indications of an improved groundwater level. The initial success of this effort has motivated us to continue the work,” says K T Gururaj Karki, a team member. Another member, Ramesh, quips, “This is for the first time that Karki stream went dry and it is our responsibility to ensure that the situation doesn’t repeat in future. This is just the beginning of our efforts.”